In 2024, 26 Hungarian Institutes (named after Franz Liszt since 2021), operate in 24 countries. Since 2014 the Hungarian Liszt Institutes are managed directly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The oldest one was established in Vienna in 1924, the latest additions were Ljubljana in 2016, Tokyo and Seoul in 2019. Besides, educational and cultural diplomats work in those countries where there is no cultural institute, but the improvement of educational and cultural relations is a priority for Hungary (Amman, Baku, Hanoi, Kiev, Madrid, Shanghai, São Paulo, Tel-Aviv). According to its mission statement, the network of the Institute strives to promote Hungarian cultural values internationally, to spread the good reputation of Hungary to the community of nations, and to foster and build cultural relations between Hungarians from within and beyond the borders.
The common web portal of the network is https://culture.hu. It reflects the customary performance of foreign cultural institutes, which is primarily the display of national culture. Bearing the title of Collegium Hungaricum, the Institutes in Berlin, Rome, and Vienna also have facilities for providing scholars with fellowships and residence.
Since 2021-22, government attempts to strengthen the role of cultural diplomacy. Bilateral cultural agreements, usually in conjunction with educational and scientific co-operation are managed by a separate deputy state secretariat for cultural diplomacy of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation. The exchange of experts is still of some importance in the agreements, especially in the heritage field. In the arts, most co-operation projects are realised through other channels.
The Petőfi Literary Agency runs several projects for promoting Hungarian Culture abroad such as a popular music export agency (HOTS) and The Continental Literary Magazine, a quarterly, English-language, thematic literary and social magazine. The Agency offers grants to foreign publishers for the translation and the production of Hungarian authors abroad. It also runs the Hungarian Translators House for residencies in the city of Balatonfüred.
The International Department of the National Film Institute represents Hungarian films abroad and handles their festival and sales activity. The government fosters the shooting of films in Hungary – several studios receive regularly large multinational productions – which is a solid segment of the international cultural cooperation of the country (and a not negligible item in foreign trade).
In the last 15 years, the spectacular exhibitions organised by the Museum of Fine Arts and the National Gallery require great efforts of international cultural co-operation.
The Ludwig Museum curates the country’s exhibits at the Venice Biennale, where Hungary has had a pavilion of its own since as early as 1909. Hungarian galleries have enjoyed a limited presence at the leading world events which is improving slowly.
Attracting major sport events is top priority for the government, absorbing large amounts of public subsidy and related investments. These are sometimes accompanied with impressive cultural performances like the opening celebrations of the 2017 World Aquatics Championships and the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. Also, the idea of an Olympics Game in Budapest has been raised again and again by the government.
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